Inside the Turkish Tower in Mayor Eric Adams' indictment

What did Turkey and its powerful, globe-trotting President Recep Tayyip Erdoan get in exchange for thousands of dollars in luxury first-class travel and other lavish perks allegedly paid to embattled Mayor Eric Adams?

According to the historic five-count indictment unsealed Thursday by Manhattan prosecutors, Erdoan destroyed a gleaming 36-story glass and steel tower across from the United Nations, called the Turkish house that overlooks the New York skyline and the East River, a consular showcase that Adams reportedly expedited despite fire safety concerns.

“In September 2021 [a Turkish official] told Eric Adams, the defendant, that it was his turn to repay the Turkish official by pressuring the New York City fire department to facilitate the opening of a new Turkish consular building, a 36-story skyscraper, without fire inspection, in time for high security. profile visit of the Turkish president,” the indictment states.

“At the time, the building reportedly failed an FDNY inspection. In exchange for free trips and bribes related to trips in 2021 and 2022 arranged by the Turkish official, Adams followed instructions.

“As a result of Adams' pressure on the FDNY, the FDNY official responsible for the FDNY's fire safety assessment of the skyscraper was informed that he would lose his job if he did not acquiesce, and after Adams' intervention, the skyscraper was opened as requested.”

In 2017, just after construction began on what is also known as the Turkevi Center, Erdogan presided over a ceremony at the site with his wife and his foreign minister.

This new building will be a worthy place for our growing and developing country whose reputation is constantly growing in all fields, Erdogan said during the ceremony, according to Turkey's official Anadolu news agency.

Turkevi House, he said, would symbolize a “space worthy of the glory of our country.”

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It was also for the glory of Erdogan, according to Sinan Ciddiexpert on Turkish domestic politics and foreign policy at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies.

“It was a totally vanity project on Erdogan’s part,” Ciddi told The Post on Thursday. “There were all kinds of questions at the time about how they were able to do these inspections so quickly and now we know.

“For Erdogan, it was about prestige – like look what we manage to do even in New York. He wanted a symbol of Turkey’s ascendancy in the world and he got it, and he got it when he wanted it.”

Perkins Eastman, the architectural firm that designed the building, calls it “a stunning addition to the New York skyline.” [which] supports U.S. Republic of Türkiye operations.

The facade is curved in homage to the crescent of the Turkish flag and the top of the Turkish house is shaped like a tulip, Turkey's national flower.

A 2021 report on the Department of Buildings' fire alarm system seen by The Post on Thursday indicated a list of fire safety issues had still not been resolved to bring the building up to code.

An FDNY spokeswoman emailed The Post on Thursday and said the building's fire alarm system was approved in March 2023, but did not provide further details except to say that the building was “safe”.

A source close to the building's construction told the Post that as of 2021, he believes “there are significant issues with this building.”

The Turkish House includes a passport and visa branch, public spaces, conference rooms, a multi-purpose prayer room and an auditorium as well as some residential units.

Turkish officials regularly hold diplomatic meetings in the building. Last September, Erdogan invited Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to the Turkish House.

The Turkish House was reportedly built by Turkish billionaire Enver Yucel, a construction magnate who is also the head of BAU Global, the education network that founded Bay Atlantic and Bahcesehir universities.

Among the Turks who appeared to benefit directly from Adams was Cenk Ocal, a former Turkish Airlines executive. He was eventually named to Adams' transition team after he became mayor in 2022 and Ocal eventually became Adams' official liaison to the Turkish community.

Last November, on the same day authorities raided the home of Adams' top fundraiser, Brianna Suggs, they also raided the homes of City Hall employee Rana Abbasova, director of protocol at the Bureau of international affairs, as well as the house of Ocal. Ocal was not named in the indictment against Adams.